The Noble Paccorohanī Festival (Second Discourse)

Monks, I will teach you the noble paccorohanī festival.

Listen and attend closely. I will speak.

And what, Monks, is the noble paccorohanī festival?

(1) Here, the Noble Disciple reflects thus: The result of wrong view is unwholesome both in this present life and in future lives. Having reflected thus, he abandons wrong view; he descends from wrong view.

(2) Here, the Noble Disciple reflects thus: The result of wrong intention is unwholesome both in this present life and in future lives. Having reflected thus, he abandons wrong intention; he descends from wrong intention.

(3) Here, the Noble Disciple reflects thus: The result of wrong speech is unwholesome both in this present life and in future lives. Having reflected thus, he abandons wrong speech; he descends from wrong speech.

(4) Here, the Noble Disciple reflects thus: The result of wrong action is unwholesome both in this present life and in future lives. Having reflected thus, he abandons wrong action; he descends from wrong action.

(5) Here, the Noble Disciple reflects thus: The result of wrong livelihood is unwholesome both in this present life and in future lives. Having reflected thus, he abandons wrong livelihood; he descends from wrong livelihood.

(6) Here, the Noble Disciple reflects thus: The result of wrong effort is unwholesome both in this present life and in future lives. Having reflected thus, he abandons wrong effort; he descends from wrong effort.

(7) Here, the Noble Disciple reflects thus: The result of wrong mindfulness is unwholesome both in this present life and in future lives. Having reflected thus, he abandons wrong mindfulness; he descends from wrong mindfulness.

(8) Here, the Noble Disciple reflects thus: The result of wrong concentration is unwholesome both in this present life and in future lives. Having reflected thus, he abandons wrong concentration; he descends from wrong concentration.

(9) Here, the Noble Disciple reflects thus: The result of wrong wisdom is unwholesome both in this present life and in future lives. Having reflected thus, he abandons wrong wisdom; he descends from wrong wisdom.

(10) Here, the Noble Disciple reflects thus: The result of wrong liberation is unwholesome both in this present life and in future lives. Having reflected thus, he abandons wrong liberation; he descends from wrong liberation.

This is called the noble paccorohanī festival.

(Reference: AN 10.120)

In this Teaching from Gotama Buddha, he shares the way of practice that he suggests on the Uposatha Day with his Students.

The Uposatha is an observance where one might choose to pay particularly close attention to one’s life practice, ensuring one does not cause any harm through bodily, verbal, and mental conduct. Household Practitioners will oftentimes increase their practice of The Five Precepts by practicing The Eight Precepts during the Uposatha.

The Buddha guided his Students to observe the Uposatha through dedicated practice of The Teachings on The Path to Enlightenment to help invigorate their practice during these special times of the month dedicated to the cleansing of the defiled/polluted mind.

Observing the Uposatha was traditionally done for two to six days each lunar month.

During the lifetime of The Buddha, the average person could understand time through the lunar calendar as the modern day calendar was not yet invented. People understood time based on the lunar schedule and could observe time by just looking into the sky. Today, depending which community one might live and participate in, there are some communities who practice this one day a week based on the modern calendar or they might still follow the lunar calendar to observe the Uposatha.

The Uposatha is described by The Buddha based on how it is practiced by his own Students - The Noble Ones or The Noble Disciples.

An uninstructed worldling is a person who is not learning, reflecting, and practicing these Teachings to train the mind on The Path to Enlightenment.

An instructed Noble Disciple is a Practitioner of The Buddha’s Teachings who is deeply learning, reflecting, and practicing these Teachings.

Items 1-10 are directly from The Ten Fold Path.

Detailed explanation of The Ten Fold Path is available in this same book series found in Chapter 5 of the book “Developing a Life Practice: The Path That Leads to Enlightenment” (Volume 1).

It is important to understand that The Buddha described observing the Uposatha Day in multiple ways, it was not described only in the way detailed within this Chapter. Instead, each additional Teaching is shared in layers, providing further content to deepen one’s understanding of his Teachings and how to practice them successfully.

Detailed explanation of The Great Fruit and Benefits of the Noble Ones’ Uposatha Observance is available in this same book series found in Chapter 74 of the book “Realms of Existence” (Volume 11).